Change of Pawns
by The creepy Nocuous Kee
Summary: Looking at the seemingly moonless sky, she vaguely wondered if she belonged there at all and if someone brought her to this moment in her life just to watch on and have a good laugh.


Staring out with a mixture of nervousness, excitement, and worry, the little girl leaned against the fence absent-mindedly. The stretching of the metal made a screeching sound as she went farther into it, and she raised her tiny fingers to let them rest between the loops of the flexible barrier. The girl smiled shyly and laughed under her breath as she watched her soon-to-be classmates run joyfully around the playground. Some happened played an odd rendition of tag, involving rubber kunais, others were just sitting around in groups, conversing with each other, and even a few more circles of friends were just randomly messing around. Just from watching them all, the young child smiled brightly, coming to the conclusion that the quicker she could join these kids, the happier she would be.

Upon hearing two voices chatting casually with each other, the girl turned her head away from the playground and to her right, where two men were approaching her at a slow pace. Squinting, she giggled when she noticed it was just her father and her new teacher and went back to daydreaming about making new friends. She only half-heartedly listened to their conversation as they got closer.

"So she may have a hard time learning with the lessons being taught in the academy. She has such a novice background-"

"Compared to the other kids, of course?"

"Well, yes. Most of the kids here have parents that were or are still ninjas, so they know a thing or two more than the average civilian." The teacher sighed softly, a little irritated from being interrupted. "But that's not all. Kī is almost three years older than all of her classmates, effectively making her a little handicapped. You might think that it would give her an advantage, but if she learns at the same pace as the others, she'll be graduating at fifteen, rather than twelve."

The father took a minute or two to respond, only speaking once both him and the teacher had reached the same fence that the little girl in question was at. Kī's father gave a short chuckle, playing around with the loose bandage that still covered his eyes.

"Well, Kī tells me that she isn't as tall as she'd like to be, so maybe she'll fit in with those kids, huh?" The girl pouted and furrowed her eyebrows at his words, but didn't say anything and kept on watching the students with the upset expression. "But in reality, it's my fault that she's starting so late. This is what she dreams of doing, so it's now or never, and as much as I am worried over it, at least I had the hopes of keeping her out of harms way for a few years longer."

"While I admire your love for your daughter, Mr. Ueda, I am confident that she will grow to become an excellent ninja. And if it makes you feel any better, I should remind you once more that the average years a student spends at the academy is seven. So you should be fine until then."

Still fiddling with the bandages, the father gave a low hum in response, obviously thinking. Not being able to view anything, he was somewhat surprised when he felt the girl's tiny hand wrap around his large one. He hadn't even heard her step away from the fence to stand closer to her himself.

Kī eyed the teacher for a moment, who happened to be watching the scene with a warm smile on his face, and then tugged on her father's shirt to get him to lower his head before whispering.

"Daddy... I'm just _learning _to be a ninja. I'll be okay, here!" The father grumbled at the statement. _Yes_, he clearly understood that she would be safe for a few more years, but he still didn't like the thought of his only daughter inevitably going on dangerous missions. He may not have grown up in a hidden village, but that didn't mean he was completely clueless. "And when I'm older and I graduate, I'll become the best kunoichi you've ever seen!"

Without an argument, the father just smiled and continued to hold Kī's hand.

"...I know."

* * *

**Just take the vague and awful prologue so I can get this idea out of my head and say 'I've tried'. I meant for this whole plot/story/whatever to be a practice for writing in 1st person, but I soon realized that I hated it. So I'm just sticking to 3rd and writing because I can.**


End file.
